Love Hurts
by selenehekate
Summary: She loves him, and he barely knows she is alive. So what's the worst news she could be given? And on Christmas, no less? Oneshot.


_Love Hurts_

She felt tortured by him every time they were in the same room. It wasn't his fault, really. How could Harry Potter possibly know that the little girl he'd saved all of those years ago was deeply in love with him? How could he know that every time she spent Christmas at the Weasley's with her older sister, she died a little on the inside as she watched Harry laugh and flirt with Ginny?

One Christmas, years after her sister had married into the Weasley world, she sipped her pumpkin juice as she sat next to the giant pine tree that had been crammed into the corner of the sitting room. She leaned back in the blue plush sofa and closed her eyes, hoping to drown out the sounds of Weasley-merriment. She wished she were at home with her parents and having a nice, quiet Christmas dinner; why had she agreed to come at all?

She felt the space beside to her dip, and she opened her eyes to see Harry sitting next to her on the couch. Her heart began to race as he grinned at her, a glass of firewhiskey in his hand. "Hello, Gabrielle."

"Harry," she said with a slight nod. She quickly took a sip of her pumpkin juice to hide the subtle shaking of her hand.

"What are you doing over here all by yourself?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow at her. "Are the Weasleys too much for you?"

"Just a bit," she said with a weak smile. "I have a small family, so I'm not used to this sort of fanfare around holidays."

A loud _bang _was heard from the kitchen, followed by cheers from the men in the room. He looked over his shoulder. "Oh, believe me. I understand. It's hard to feel like you belong in such a large gathering." Harry's eyes were shinning as he faced her, and he quickly downed the rest of his drink. "So I'm going to help with that. I'm going to tell you a secret. Can you keep a secret, Gabrielle?"

"Oh," she blinked, surprised by his question, and she suddenly felt a small surge of hope fill her chest. "Of course."

He scooted over, until his leg was pressed flush against hers, and he lowered his voice. "Last night, I asked Ginny to marry me. And she said yes! But don't tell anyone yet; we want to wait until after Christmas pudding before we break out the good news."

He was grinning from ear to ear, looking happier than Gabrielle thought she'd ever seen him, and she couldn't have been more horrified if she tried. He was engaged. He was _engaged!_ Her throat closed up, and it was all she could do to croak out a soft, "Congratulations."

"Thank you, Gabrielle. You know, you should come and join the festivities. We're not all bad, I promise," he said as he started to stand up... before he was quickly thrown back onto the couch by an invisible force. His smile was wiped from his face as Gabrielle looked at him, startled. "What the-" Harry glanced up, and immediately started to laugh. "Oh, boy," he said as he looked back at her. "Looks like we're trapped underneath some of George's enchanted mistletoe."

Gabrielle's eyes widened in horror as her head shot up. "_What_?" Sure enough, a small green leaf of mistletoe hung over their heads, suspended in midair.

"Sorry, Gabs. But it looks like you and I are going to have to kiss," he said with another laugh as he leaned in.

His hands were cupping her cheeks, his leg was pressed against her own, and his lips were soft and gentle. It was everything she could have ever asked for. Yet she was forcing down the bile in her throat as he pulled away, a slight smile on his face. He was engaged. He was _engaged!_

"Happy Christmas!" he said as he stood up at last and moved off to the kitchen where the rest of the family was gathered.

Tears built up in her eyes as she wrapped her arms more firmly around herself. What should have been the best moment in her life had become her nightmare.

* * *

_This was written for the Hogwarts Games: Men's Football. It was also written for the Pairing Diversity Boot Camp with the prompt "Love Hurts," and for the Christmas Boot Camp with the prompt "mistletoe." Please review it and tell me what you think! I'd love some criticism. Thanks!_

_Cheers!_

_-Selene_


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